A new world
by candyfloss2008
Summary: Mrs. Hudson is retiring after having enough of Holmes antiques and leaves Ariana to deal with all the mess. But what happens when Ariana falls in love, Sherlock starts to have feelings and a new evil arrises over London? Holmes/OC
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: **

Okay so this is my first story ever, please be gentle with the criticism. I wish to make a funny, romantic and adventurous story featuring Sherlock Holmes and my OC Ariana Dale . I hope you enjoy it and review it. Don't worry, all your review will be read by me and will be taken in consideration. Vote, review and have fun!

Writing:

normal

_thoughts_

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><p>At 21 years old you think you saw most of the world and that you know and understand at least half of it, well I am here to prove you wrong. It all starts in September, the city of London is as crowded and as moist as ever maybe even worse. I just got the job as a landlady on 221b Baker Street . Mrs. Hudson a good friend of my family is retiring after 20 years of hard work with "That devil of a man" as she says.<p>

I am dressed in a dark green dress , a bit too elegant for a landlady but it is my favorite dress, my dark brown hair was tied up, in my right hand I am carrying my suitcase and in my left hand is the letter sent by Mrs. Hudson with the address on it. Finally after 2 hours of walking from the train station I fond the lovely house of which I was landlady. As I arrived there a loud gunshot sound rung through the air. Calmly, I walked to the door and knocked, after 2 minutes a tall, handsome and kept man answered the door, in that moment I knew this was not Mr. Holmes but Mr. Watson, Mr. Holmes associate. " Good evening , Miss. How may I help you?" "Good evening Dr. Watson! My name is Ariana Dale, I am the new land lady and housekeeper. Didn't Mrs. Hudson announce you of my arrival? She asked me to come today for an interview of sorts. If I came at a wrong time do tell me, I will come back another time. " " No,no, don't worry Miss Dale. Do come in, Mr. Holmes will be right down for the interview. Please sit down, would you like anything coffee, tea?" " I would love a cup of tea Mr. Watson and please call me Ariana" " Than, Ariana, you can call me John. I will ask the maid to prepare a cup of tea right away. I am afraid this is her last day too so you will take the job of maid too. I am awfully sorry." "Don't worry John I think I can handle the work." As I said those words another gunshot shook the house. " Miss Ariana I am going to get Holmes and stop him from ruining the house. Please excuse me. Oh and a bit of a warning, Holmes is a detective as you probably know so he will tend to analyse and expose your darkest secrets. " " Thank you for the warning, John! I will be prepared." with that being said Watson climbed up the stairs and made his way in what I believed was Mr. Holmes room. After a few moments you cold hear yelling from the room. " HOLMES! What have you done to the dog again? You killed my dog again!" " It is not your dog but our dog and it's not dead it is just paralysed, the effect should go off in 2 hours I suppose" " You suppose? It is no wonder that your devilish ways made poor Mrs. Hudson to retire early. Now come down Holmes, her poor replacement arrived and you have to interview her." " A new nanny? Interesting but my dear Watson I don't think I need a new nanny..." " You don't think you need one? Look at this house without someone to look after you,you will definitely break it down! At least come down and see her, I beg you Holmes!" " Well if you ask so nicely old chap then I will see her but I don't guarantee anything." After that last phrase I heard two pairs of feet coming down the stairs. At first I saw only Watson but behind him a wonderful, handsome and apparently unkempt man appeared. His dark eyes scrutinising every fibre of my body making me shiver under his hot gaze. I froze in the middle of the room, my eyes glued on his, my heart was raging in my chest beating at a furious pace, ready to burst out of my heart. I opened my mouth to say something, anything but nothing came out I was opening and closing my mouth like a fish, like a fool I was.

_COME ON! Say something, greet him, present yourself, just wake up! _ With this thought I went up to him and greeted him. "Good evening, Sir!" "Oh, yes where are my manners! Holmes allow me to present you Mrs. Ariana Dale, hopefully our new landlady and maid. She came here with recommendation from Mrs. Hudson.", said Watson while slowly pushing Holmes towards me. " Yes, good evening to you too Mrs. Dale. My name is Sherlock Holmes, as you know I am a detective so please if you would let me analyse you..." " Holmes! I don't think it is proper to..." "Of course Mr. Holmes, but after you analyse me may I do the same thing to you sir?" " I think it only fair." " Perfect, Mr. Holmes! Now let's begin!" _ " _As you wish. Well you are dressed very elegant but not too rich making me think you come from a middle class family, you do not wear any jewellery except the ring on your right hand middle finger, I believe your deceased mother's ring. You packed a lot of things making me believe you are a very confident person. You have a scar on your right leg right above your knee it is probably made by a stab wound that occurred 2 years ago at about the same time as your parent's death, am I right?" At this moment I was red with fury and tears singed my eyes waiting to spill on my cheeks but I wouldn't let them. " Yes you are quite right Mr. Holmes. Now may I proceed with my analysis?" " Of course you may...if you can tell one thing right about me then I will give you this job if not you will be requested to leave immediately." " Fair trade, Sir! Now Mr. Holmes I can tell that you are involved with a woman between 20 and 25 years old, she is american, she came by 2 days ago and she wears the perfume called Delire . Right now you are highly drugged, cocaine I think, after the length of your unshaven beard you haven't had a case in a week and after the glint in your eyes the woman from America arrived with a case for you is it not sir?" When I looked up I saw that Watson had his mouth agape in shock and Holmes had a strange sparkle in his look like a hunter would have when ready to attack his prey. That look was unnerving, sending waves of unknown shivers through me. After a few seconds Watson came back to earth and said in a shocked voice " She was right with everything she said, Holmes. Amazing, just amazing!" I felt myself blushing at this compliment and I looked down in embarrassment. " You are right Watson, she was right. So Miss. Dale I guess you are hired, you start tomorrow morning. Today you can fix up your room and settle down your possessions . Your apartment is right next to mine, Watson will guide you there and offer you a tour of the house. Now if you will excuse me I have a case to solve, right Watson old chap?" " But Holmes! Mary is waiting for me..." " It's perfectly fine John I think Mr. Holmes can show me to my room and tomorrow if you would like you may show me the rest of this lovely house." Holmes grunted and accepted my proposal as Watson was smiling and thanking me for my understanding. After John left, Holmes told me to follow him upstairs and showed me my room. It was small but welcoming, the walls were painted a warm beige and they were full of paintings and pictures of places in London, the floor was made out of chocolate brown wood, contrasting lightly with the walls and on the floor was a lovely tan with beige Persian-like rug with red flourishing. The furniture consisted of a small bed with cream sheets, a brown night stand, a small desk, a relatively big bookshelf, a drawer for my clothes and a lovely mirror with a chair and a small table in front of it. On the right hand wall was a beautiful little fireplace. The room was perfect I had everything I needed to live happily all my life, I finally felt home, where I needed to be.

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><p>So this is the first one! hopefully you will like it! Vote and review!<p> 


	2. Chapter 2

I sat on my bed thinking about what happened that day, Mr. Holmes was exactly as I thought a great man that can't help himself not to comment on the secrets of a person that to him are quite obvious. I lay down on the bed and noticed that all that Holmes deduced from my clothing and my general appearance was quite true. It made my hair stand up as I thought that this man knew more about my past than any person alive and that without actually talking to him. He is a strange but lovely man, very handsome and fascinating, a true mystery ready to unfold to the right person. Hopefully I was _the_ person he will open up to. With that thought I pulled the covers over my body and fell into a deep sleep.

The next morning I woke up at six o'clock sharp and prepared myself

for a day of hard work . I put on a black comfortable dress and tied up my white apron, it was weird for me to dress like this I prefer elegant clothing to this. I went down the stairs and straight into the kitchen. I sat for a few minutes looking around in shock. Dirty plates were everywhere, everything was full of grime, mold and a strange gelatin that smelled foul. I can say it took a lot of courage from me to start cleaning the room, I took the first plate and scrubbed it until it sparkled and so on until there was no plate left, after that I took my broom and swept for half an hour until I was satisfied with the result, next went dusting and cleaning the floor. After two hours of scrubbing on my knees I heard a creek from upstairs and then a little slam. In seconds Mr. Holmes was at the kitchen door, his eyes wide and his mouth agape. He muttered words like " What have you done to my kitchen?" and entered the room amazed. "Miss Ariana", he said," what have you done to my kitchen?" "Well as your genius mind can see I cleaned the room all morning." "Did I ask you to do that, Miss Ariana?" "No you did not, sir, but I had no plates, no cups and no pans cleaned so that I could make breakfast." "I will let it slide Miss Ariana but next time I will not be so kind. I like to have my things where I leave them. Now what do we have for breakfast?" "We, sir?" "Yes, I wouldn't let a lady starve while I am eating. Now do answer the question." "Well I guess I will make fried eggs sunny side up with bacon, toast, honey and jam. Of course with tea on the side is that alright sir?" "It sounds enjoyable and please Miss Ariana call me Sherlock" "Alright, Sherlock but as I asked Mr. Watson call me Ariana too." "Okay, Ariana." As my name rolled of his tongue I thought that I had never heard my name being called so sensually and enticing before. Goosebumps flooded my skin and a dark red blush covered my pale cheeks. A smirk played on his lips as if he knew the effect that he had on me, he looked deep into my eyes, seeking my soul, before announcing that he is to be found in his chambers and leaving. I stood there for a few minutes a bit dumbstruck by him doing nothing but saying my name what a foolish person I must be, sitting in the middle of the kitchen, mouth agape and 3 plates in my hands, ready to be put back in place. Then a horrible thought struck me like lightning: _ Why would he be attracted my me? I am a simple maid and a land lady, nothing compared to his genius… a nobody, a servant and nothing more._

As I finished the train of thought a knock was heard at the door. I opened it only to find Dr. Watson at the door. He was wearing a nice brown costume with a light brown tie and polished shoes. As I took a better look I told him with sincerity that he should change his maid. He stood frozen to the spot for a second then said: "That is the exact same thing Holmes told me 3 days ago… How did you know that? " "Well John your heels have scratch marks made with a knife while cleaning your shoes. That maid is quite clumsy, don't you think? Now do come in it is frizzing outside." " Is Holmes up yet?" "Yes, he woke up 5 minutes ago. He was terribly shocked to see that I cleaned the kitchen. It is spotless now. Oh! How rude of me would you like to have breakfast?" "Yes, thank you very much! Will Holmes be attending?" "Yes, he said he will come. Please John take a seat while I prepare you some tea and I cook the food. It will only take 5 minutes."

After I served the tea and I cooked the food I want upstairs and knocked on Holmes door, finding that no one answered I opened the door slowly and slid into the room. You can imagine my shock when I found him lying on the carpet, shirtless and with his eyes closed. For a second I panicked thinking that maybe he took an overdose of cocaine and died, I was terrified until I notice he was breathing. I knelt down next to him and shook him lightly, he opened his eyes and stared at me for a second before saying "Ariana you don't need to worry about me taking an overdose I calculate it 3 times before injecting. You were in a bit of a panic, weren't you? I was merely sleeping while I waited for my breakfast." "Goodness God, Sherlock you have some weird sleeping habits. By the way breakfast is ready and John is waiting for you downstairs." " Yes of course he is, we just received a new case, not one of great difficulty but a case nonetheless. If you would like to participate, I could use a brilliant mind such as yours to dissect the case." "You wouldn't mind me Sherlock? Are you sure?" " Yes, I am quite sure this case needs a woman's touch, if you don't mind of course." " I don't mind at all I am actually quite honored to participate at a case with the amazing Sherlock Holmes." I could feel his ego growing fast and strong as he told me in a proud voice "That is quite the compliment, Ariana. Now, if you don't mind let's go have our breakfast and get to work."


	3. Chapter 3

**Author Note**

**Thank you Dreaming Out Loud since '98 for the reviews and for your much needed help.**

**I want to say that I will publish 2-4 chapters every week, depending on my ****schedule.**

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own Sherlock Holmes , I own my OC Ariana Dale and parts of the plot.**

As I served the breakfast, Sherlock and John discussed the details of the case. A woman from the high society has been murdered three days prior and Sherlock got a letter from the victims husband begging him to investigate her untimely death. In the letter he mentioned he will be visiting at tea time, promising a great deal of money if the detective took his case.

Suddenly Sherlock rose from his chair and asked me the most strange quesiton.

" Ariana, do tell me, are you familiar with guns? As in do you know how to use a gun? And of course, do you own a gun?" " Well Sherlock I do know how to make use of a gun and I am quite proud on my aim. No, I do not own a gun, I sold all my weaponry years ago. Why do you ask, Holmes?" "We will leave right away to get you a Revolver and a new dress that you will not be sorry to stain and tarnish." " Why would I need these objects, there are of no use to me." " Oh, but they are! You, Ariana, are now my new assistant and partner in discovering crime. And the things I mentioned are needed to fulfil your duty". I stood rooted to the spot with my mouth hanging open. I let out a little squeal and hugged said detective. He reacted kind of awkward by patting my back rhythmically. I let go of him fast and told him I would be ready in a few minutes.

In 15 minutes I was fully dressed, in a light blue dress with a white bow and a white hat. I wore flat shoes and a small purse in my hand. My hair was tied in a tight bun with a few strands hanging loose, framing my face. I ran down the stairs and met Sherlock who was trying to tie his cravat but not being able to. I went to him, took his hands in mine, lowering them and tying his cravat myself. With a slight blush on my cheeks I wanted to pull back to create some space between me and the detective but his hands found mine not letting me go. I looked deep in his dark eyes, seeing the hole world in them, the meaning of life and more importantly I saw feelings that no other creature could muster. Without breaking eye contact we unconsciously started to get closer to each other. As our lips nearly met, Watson cam bursting in the room and yelling about Holmes taking his vest again. We parted immediately, each looking in a different direction and pretending to be engrossed in a lame activity like polishing my shoes. Watson stopped in the middle of the room and stared us suspiciously. After a few moments of awkward silence he went back to rambling about his clothes being stolen, leaving me and Sherlock in an tight uncomfortable silence. We looked at each other and we decided to try an act as normal as we could. Arm in arm we left Baker Street bidding Watson a good evening.

When we reached the place from where we could buy a gun, I was completely terrified. Men with murderous looks in their eyes glanced at us, prostitutes were swarming Sherlock and other dirt of society lurked ready to hit. I gripped Sherlocks arm tighter and pressed myself against him for protection. He pulled me close to him as well as we entered a strange looking shop, with a decaying look to it. The shopkeeper, a little old man, when he saw Sherlock he pulled out a brand new looking Revolver from a drawer and gave it to him as Holmes gave the man his money. We got out of the store fast and moved towards the exit. Holmes gave the the gun and I placed it in my garter, as discretely as I could. Loosing my concentration on following Sherlock I quickly got lost and soon found out that 3 men were following me. I quickened my pace to a mild run and I looked in my corset for my hidden knives, while entering a small empty alley. I prepared myself for a good fight. I stood there ready for them as I heard 3 sets of legs coming after me. When they reached me, I felt fear start to enter my bones but I though that I must be strong and fight them with all my might at least until Sherlock finds me.

" Hey there sweetheart, me and my friends here would like to give you a very good time with us! See we are true gentlemen!" "Go away! I warn you! Leave me alone!" " That was quite rude of you to say lady! So how about I teach you a lesson" , he said as he grabbed my hand and slammed me into a wall, preparing himself to rip my dress. Before he could do any harm I slammed my knee in his groin and elbowed him in the nose while slamming my other hand against his ribs, breaking them in the process. The man fell to the ground howling in pain as the two others came at me in rage.

_Grab some dirt from the ground, throw in eyes, punch in the nose, break, kick knee twice, dislocate, slam head in wall, lose consciousness. Take dagger from corset, stab the other man in the arm, kick leg break tibia and fibula, slam knee in the face, break jaw and nose. Total recover time 8 months._

As I put an end to my train of thought I started the fight, all happening the way I planned except that after I finished with them I saw Holmes looking with mouth slight agape at the three massive men lying unconscious on the ground. I blushed scarlet as his glance fell on me. He looked quite proud as he grabbed my arm and hurried me down the street.

" My dear, Ariana, you are quite the independent woman, now aren't you?", he said with a smirk playing on his lips. " Well I learned to defend myself quite well when I was young and I enjoy boxing very much too." " Well then, I should invite you to watch me fight next time. Now Miss Ariana...Let's buy you some clothes."

After that the day went smoothly, no other scandal or important memory. As we got home we unpacked and waited for the client to arrive. At 5 o'clock sharp, a light knock was heard at the door.

The client had arrived.


	4. Chapter 4

**DISCLAIMER: I do Not own Sherlock Holmes I own my OC Ariana Dale and parts of the plot**

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><p>The client was at the door and I was momentarily frozen in place. After a few seconds I snapped out of it and hurried to the door, opening it slowly. There stood a very tall man with tan skin and dark eyes. His hair was well combed and a black hat rested on his head. He was dressed in black head to toe and a sad nearly desperate look bore into his eyes. I smiled and invited him in and analyzed him better he was maybe in his late forties. When he was young he had a sort of accident because he had a slight limp, from his stiff posture I deduced that he was a former soldier and from the grief in his eyes I knew that he cared for his late wife more than anything. My train of thought was broken by the rough and booming voice of the man.<p>

"I am sorry Madam! Let me introduce myself I am Gerald Stronghold, I suppose Mr. Holmes is waiting for me.", his voice had a thick American accent that sounded very strange to my ears but also interesting as I had never heard an accent like that one.

" My name is Ariana Dale, I am the assistant of Mr. Holmes . Let me show you upstairs. Mr. Holmes is waiting."

" But Miss Dale you are a woman! How come Mr. Holmes accepted a woman as an assistant?", he said with a frown upon his face. At this moment I was trying hard not to raise my voice at the rude man but as I started to open my mouth to retort, a pair of legs were descending the stairs and Sherlock emerged from the shadows looking as breath taking as ever even more so as he was shaved and well dressed.

" Good evening Mr. Stronghold! I do hope that you are here with a case for me and Miss Dale to solve and not to criticize my partner."

" Y-yes, Mr. Holmes! I am here to ask you to solve my wife's death for I belive it was murder and not a silly accident."

" Now let's go upstairs, sit down and talk about this case in front of a cup of tea."

So we went upstairs had a seat and slowly drunk our tea. When he finished his first cup of tea, Sherlock started asking Mr. Stronghold routine questions like when it happened, where and where he was at the time of the murder.

" Excuse me, sir but can you please tell me how she died? You didn't give us many detailes on the way she died.", I asked a little bit shy about asking questions. I looked at Sherlock for a confirmation that my interrogation was well placed and when he nodded my confidence came back to me.

" Yes, well she died because her neck was slit. She was dismembered, the police said that it was a clean cut that only a person familiar with anatomy could do." When he said that he was looking down, avoiding eye contact and looking extremely guilty and not even thinking I asked him somehow rudely:

" Mr. Stronghold why are you looking so guilty when you are talking about your wife's death? "

His face was one of deep shock and his answer shocked me and left Sherlock with a I knew it look on his handsome face. _ God! Did I just think that he is handsome? What is happening to me?_, came the confused thought, but I knew what was happening but I was not going to accept the fact that I fell in love with the famous detective.

" I am sorry Mrs. Dale, Mr. Holmes I haven't been completely truthful about my relationship with my wife. I was having an affair with our maid Jannet Spencer. She is also married to the butcher Jerry Spencer, an awful man, he always manhandles her, a true brute."

" Thank you Mr. Stronghold we will take your case without much fuss that will stain your reputation. Of course we will need to talk with your maid and her husband about the case."

" Of course! You can come tomorrow at any hour and talk to her. You will find the beast at the butcher shop near my house."

After he left, me and Sherlock started thinking about the case. I was sure he already solved it all and that this was a test for me, to prove myself as his assistant and I was going to give my best and make him proud of me.

" So sherlock what would you like to eat tonight?" I asked blushing lightly as he approached me until our bodies were so close that I could feel the heat radiating from him.

" I am so proud of you and your deductive skills, you noticed he was guilty of something immediately and you acted on it. You are amazing, an amazing and beautiful woman. I have never met one like you." I froze, my knees going weak as he held my waist, pulling me towards him, his cologne filling nostrils. When his lips fell on mine my eyes fluttered closed and I was amazed by the feeling. I tangled my fingers in his hair and pulled him closer, his hands grabbed my face as his tongue brushed against my lips inviting me to open them. He invaded my mouth, kissing me fiercely. We suddenly heard a cough and we broke up fast. Watson was standing at the door flushed and somewhat shocked.

" So I guess you like our new landlady and assistant Holmes. You have gotten quite close haven't you?"

" Yes Watson I find her quite fascinating and a mystery to me as she kept most of her past hidden. I do enjoy her company and her intelligence. Oh and by the way she fights extremely well and handles a gun even better than you my dear Watson."

" Do I want to know how you know all that Holmes or should I find comfort in ignorance? Or maybe I will guess. You lost her when you went to buy the gun and she had to protect herself against some rapists of sort am I right?"

" Yes you are quite right, isn't he darling?"

_DARLING? He called me darling...does that mean we are in a sort of relationship now? Or is it just a way to fool Watson about something?_

" Yes John you are right but it wasn't Sherlocks fault it was mine I was looking around and lost sight of him in the crowd. Though I must say I handled myself quite well in that fight."

" Okay , if you say so Miss. Ariana I have to trust you. So I heard you have a new case."

" Don't you mean we John?"

" I cannot participate in this case Miss. Ariana as I am preparing for my wedding with Mary. I came here just so I could ask Holmes to be my best man."

" I am quite honored Watson thank you for that decision. And yes, we do have a new case, a woman was killed, butchered better said. Her husband asked me to find her killer. He told us about his affair and tomorrow we are going to talk with the maid and her husband."

" Quite interesting, what do you think Miss. Ariana? Who do you think is the killer?"

" Well I have two suspects in my mind. The maid and her husband. Mr. Stronghold told us her husband is a butcher and that the way she was cut was clean cut, that makes him a suspect, that and also the fact that he is a violent man. But at the sam time, his wife could have learned the trade from her husband and in a jealousy rage she could have killed the poor woman."

" An interesting theory darling, isn't it Watson?" said Holmes while looking as proud as he could be.

" Yes and awfully rational, Miss. Ariana you are one of the most intelligent person I ever met. Of course the first place is occupied by Holmes but now you own the second place."

At that I blushed and hid a bit behind Sherlock while holding his hand. He looked at me deep in the eyes and I saw an emotion that I had never seen before in my life but I was keen on discovering what it was.


End file.
